


Hearts Don't Break Around Here

by bettyluvsjuggie



Series: He Was Gone [2]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Coda, Coda for He Was Gone, F/M, Get ready for a lot of fluff kids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-12
Updated: 2017-09-12
Packaged: 2018-12-27 06:55:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12075834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bettyluvsjuggie/pseuds/bettyluvsjuggie
Summary: A little addition to the He Was Gone universe, at the end of their senior year.





	Hearts Don't Break Around Here

**Author's Note:**

> I was not planning on doing any codas for this story, but this popped into my head this morning and I couldn't stop thinking about it... so I had to write it. 
> 
> Special shoutout to bugheadotp (sarah, she's a babe) for the motivation/moral support and cooperbettycooper (ten, also a babe) for helping me out with the ending (I got blocked right at the end it was so irritating.)
> 
> Anyway, happy reading! <3

“B, emergency meeting!” Veronica announced as she rushed into the high school’s common room, plopping onto the couch beside them. “Oh hey Jughead” she added flippantly.

“Wow, nice to see you too Veronica” he tutted beneath his breath, while Betty lifted her head from his shoulder with a laugh, but made no effort to unstick herself from his side, fully tucked beneath his arm. It still felt surreal that Jughead was actually with her at Riverdale High, even if he had spent everyday of their senior year by her side - she still wanted to stay glued to him, just in case.

“Oh hush, there are more important things at hand!” she waved her hands dramatically. “I’m having a crisis!”

“What’s the matter V? Everything alright?” Betty asked, frowning a little when she began to grow a little concerned. Truthfully, the worry started to dissipate almost immediately when Jughead started to thread his fingers through her hair, which she had been wearing down more recently, as a subtle way of trying to push herself out of her comfort zone. She had to stop herself from letting out a soft hum of approval at how he gently combed through her gold coloured locks, a simple yet effective way he’d discovered to calm her down in those situations where her body went tense with anxiety. She just leaned her head back onto his shoulder, shuffling impossibly closer to him on the couch, continuing to look at her friend expectantly.

“Guys, can you stop being adorable for just a second? Just this once, please” Veronica rolled her eyes at their subtle affection. “Okay… please tell me you haven’t bought your prom dress yet, B!” she muttered pleadingly, eyes filled with worry.

“Your crisis is about prom dresses? Really?” Jughead scoffed with raised eyebrows.

“You own like one outfit Jughead!” she narrowed her eyes at him, looking over his familiar jeans and flannel combination with something akin to disgust. “Some of us care about how we look, especially for the biggest event of the year… not to mention the last” she said, her tone very matter-of-factly.

“Isn’t graduation the last one?” he quipped with a small smirk, clearly making an effort to irk Veronica. “That could also be considered the biggest since you actually gain something from it, right? You know, nothing important, just your diploma.”

“Shhh, stop talking!” Veronica dismissed him, waving her hands. “Betty, your dress?” she asked eagerly, leaning forward in her chair.

“I haven’t bought one” Betty mumbled in reply, nuzzling further into her boyfriend’s shoulder. She was practically being lulled to sleep, as Jughead’s fingers had removed themselves from her hair, falling onto her back instead and were currently tracing small, lazy patterns beside her shoulder blade.

“Great!” she clapped her hands in delight. “We’ll go shopping this weekend! I’ve made a decision-”

“V, I don’t want to go to prom” Betty mumbled, her eyes fluttering closed before she could see her best friend’s mouth fall open in shock.

“Wait, what?” Jughead pulled away from her a little so he could look at her, meaning Betty had to look back at him because his shoulder had moved away from beneath her head. “Since when don’t you want to go to prom?” he asked, his brow furrowed with confusion.

“Betty, you’re on the damn planning committee!” Veronica yelled, raising from her seat and frantically waving her arms.

“V! Calm down” Betty couldn’t help but breathe a laugh. “I didn’t ever really intend on going, but helping organise it looked good on college applications” she explained nonchalantly with a shrug, but it seemingly did nothing to lessen Veronica’s wide eyes.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” her gaze flitted back to Jughead, who was still frowning and looking extremely puzzled.

“‘I didn’t ever really feel the need to say anything, we’ve never talked about prom” Betty said with a small smile. “Do you want to go?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.

“No, but I thought you would want to… I kind of just assumed we were going” he muttered, brushing a stray strand of hair away from her forehead. You’re not bailing because of me, are you?” he questioned, concerned.

“No, no… I just don’t feel like going” she reassured with a smile. She leant forward and placed a kiss on his cheek, letting her lips linger by his ear for a moment while she whispered, out of Veronica’s earshot, “I’ll explain properly later.” When she pulled back, he gave her a nod and a small smile.

“Well, I’m not happy!” Veronica declared, sinking back down into the plush cushions of the couch. “Now I can’t go!” she huffed, flicking a hair away from her face dramatically.

“Huh? What do you mean V?” Betty’s head snapped back to her friend, confused by her statement.

“I decided to go stag, you know to sort of… commemorate the fact that I haven’t let any guys distract me this year… to celebrate that I’m an independent woman” she offered with a shrug, her gaze not quite meeting theirs. “I can’t go if you two don’t, because I’ll be lonely and by myself all night!” she protested. When she spotted Jughead holding back a laugh with a smirk, her eyes narrowed at him. “What?” she spat accusingly.

“Just a weird coincidence…” he chuckled. “I guess you hadn’t heard that Archie’s also going stag?” he asked with a knowing smile. “I guess if Betty and I don’t go, you feel like you have no discrete justification to talk to him?” Veronica and Archie’s break up during the summer had been seemingly permanent, and it was definitely the longest they had been completely separated, lasting the entirety of their senior year… Or at least that’s how it appeared on the surface. With some reluctance, mainly on Veronica’s part, they had agreed to try and be friends, for real this time. Throughout the year, Betty and Jughead had watched them pine over each other quietly, this time both in active denial of their feelings, clutching desperately to the ‘we’re just friends!’ defense.

“Nope… definitely hadn’t heard that” she shook her head firmly, her gaze flitting around the room.

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re an absolutely shit liar Veronica?” he laughed. “Because if not, please do let me have the pleasure of being the first” he flashed her a shit-eating grin.

“I don’t know how you put up with him B” she grumbled with a roll of her eyes, grabbing her bag and standing up, brushing imaginary dust of her skirt. “We have more to discuss on this matter” she pointed a polished finger at them. “Prom, not Archie!” she yelled defensively when Jughead raised his eyebrows at her, before rushing from the room.

“She’s so not over him” Betty giggled, snuggling back into Jughead’s side. “They’re going to hook up at prom, I guarantee it.”

“My thoughts exactly” Jughead chuckled, slinging his arm across the back of the couch.

\--

“So can you talk me through this whole ‘not going to prom’ thing?” Jughead dumped his school bag on the floor and flopped down onto Betty’s bed, propping himself on one elbow while she lay down on her front beside him.

“I don’t know… I guess I just don’t really want to say goodbye to high school like that” she sighed, leaning her head on her folded arms and looking up at him.

“What do you mean, babe?” he murmured, placing a hand on her lower back and shuffling slightly closer to her.

“You know... “ she sighed, letting her eyes fall closed. “In the gym, where I’ve had more than one panic attack in front of everyone. With all the people who judged me when I was at my worst, who plaster on fake smiles and pretend they didn’t call me crazy for three years. And it’s _a lot_ of people Juggie… you know I didn’t do well at the last dance we went to” her eyes fluttered open again to meet the blue pools of concern that dwelled in Jughead’s.

“I actually had a good time that night” he offered her a sad smile.

“So did I… because we left” she sighed. Betty hated to recall how they’d barely been at the winter dance for twenty minutes before she’d panicked; there was just too many people, getting just a little too close to her, looking at her just a little too much and it had suddenly felt like all the oxygen in the room was being used up... but she was paralysed, rooted to her spot. To his credit, Jughead had noticed in seconds how Betty’s demeanour had changed: how the excitement behind her eyes had faded, the way her hands had curled into tight fists. Without asking any questions, he had taken one of her hands and intertwined their fingers, guiding them towards the doors of the gym and then continuing through the hallways of the school until they had stepped into the cool night air. He had pulled her into his chest and let her cry, sobs fuelled by frustration with herself and being tired of the never-ending stream of anxiety that flowed through every crevice of her life. Instead of going back inside, they spent the night swaddled in blankets together in the bed of FP’s truck, drinking hot chocolates from Pop’s and looking up at the stars, ignoring all the things that Betty was tired of talking about.

“I don’t want to remember my prom like that Juggie” she smiled sadly. “I would rather just start with the second part of that night… spending time with people that matter, spending time with you. We don’t have to go to prom to do that.”

“I love you, you know that?” he murmured, pulling her close to him and burying his head in her neck.

“I know” she shifted so she could wrap an arm around him, hugging herself to him. “Thank you, Jughead.”

“For what?” he mumbled, absentmindedly stroking her hair. He smiled when Betty reached up and pushed the beanie off his locks and onto the pillows with a smile, letting his raven curls fall free.

“I just don’t know whether I would have survived this year without you…” she sighed, staring into Jughead’s eyes while her own filled with moisture.

“C’mon Betts” he sighed heavily. “Don’t say that... God Betty, you’re so brave all the time, no matter how much you’re terrified inside. You fight so hard for yourself and for everyone else and you don’t even realise you’re doing it, it’s just a natural reflex. That is why you’re the strongest person I know, okay? You don’t need me to survive” he assured her with a smile.

“Even so, you’ve helped me in more ways than you can even imagine… and I can never thank you enough for coming back” she whispered, well aware she was repeating words they’d shared a few thousand times over in all those months since the summer had ended and yet it didn’t make them any less true.

“I’ve told you before, my reasons for moving back to Riverdale were entirely selfish” he breathed a quiet laugh.

“No, they weren’t” she said with a knowing smile, she was well aware that most of his motivations had come from a place of concern for her. Even if he hadn’t confessed it to her before, she only had to take one look at his face to see it scrawled throughout his expression when they talked about this.

“No, they weren’t” he admitted honestly, his smile only widening a little. “But even if you could have survived this year without my help, there is no way I could have without you. I am shamelessly addicted to Betty Cooper” he grinned, before leaning forward and capturing her mouth in a searing kiss.

“I love you Juggie” she whispered against his lips, immediately tangling her hands in the back of his hair.

“I love you too, Betty” he murmured between kisses, pulling her body flush against him. He was pleasantly surprised when she rolled so she was straddling him, his hands finding their way to rest firmly on her hips. “How long until your parents get home?” he asked desperately, his voice rough with desire.

“Long enough” she muttered, sitting up and yanking off her sweater, before crashing her lips back to his.

\--

Much to Betty’s surprise, Veronica didn’t pester her about prom any further. She had been anticipating a relentless insistence, and was a little unnerved when it didn’t come. In fact, Veronica had been overtly accepting of her decision, which was suspicious enough, and had even proposed that she might not go herself, which was downright shocking. Betty tried not to dwell on it, but there was definitely something off about the situation.

As she had promised at the planning meetings, Betty helped hang posters throughout the school and sell tickets at lunchtime, she ordered the perfect decorations and helped string them up in the gymnasium, she listened to people babble and chatter about how excited they were and how it was going to be perfect… And for a moment, she wanted it.

It hadn’t been a snap decision to not attend, in fact quite the opposite. The thoughts and anticipation had been unrelenting, bugging her for days on end and haunting her while she she lay in bed awake until she had thought of a solution. But, even though there was a very well thought out and rational list of reasons why she shouldn’t, that didn’t stop the little girl she used to be from dreaming of the perfect prom. So, she planned that perfect prom with a heavy heart, and waited for the days to pass. She knew it would all be over soon.

When prom night finally rolled around, she answered the door, expecting to see Jughead ready for the movie-marathon they had planned but was surprised to be met with Veronica. She was clad in a stunning deep purple dress, with a plunging neckline leading to a gathered waistband and a long skirt flowing to the floor.

“Veronica…” Betty gasped, taking in the gorgeous attire and Veronica’s flawless hair and makeup. “V, you look beautiful” she smiled genuinely, tears threatening to gather in her eyes. “Can I take a picture?” she clutched her hands to her chest, admiring her best friend again.

“Not yet… we need to get you ready first” Veronica said with a small smile, stepping into the house. Betty wasn’t sure how she hadn’t seen the garment bag draped over her arm before, but when she spotted it, she started backing away hesitantly, feeling her body seize up in shock.

“No no no… I’m not going to prom V! I told you I wasn’t going!” Betty’s voice trembled a little with the shock, and Veronica’s eyes softened when she saw her panic.

“I know that” she assured calmly, her voice quietly soothing as she placed a hand on Betty’s arm gently. “I’m here under strict instruction from Jughead, I swear.”

“Jughead?” Betty frowned in confusion, but some of the tension had already released from her shoulders. “V, what’s going on?”

“Part of my instructions are to not tell you anything” she grinned mischievously. “Come on, let’s go upstairs.”

Veronica really wasn’t lying when she said she wouldn’t tell her anything. Betty wouldn’t stop asking questions the entire time her friend spent doing her makeup, despite Veronica’s pleads that she stay still as she applied various products to her face, but all went unanswered.

“Just trust me, B” Veronica breathed a quiet laugh. “Or if that’s unsatisfactory, trust Jughead” she chuckled, setting the numerous tiny brushes down on Betty’s vanity and stepping back to admire her work with a satisfied smile. “Okay, now the dress… The second I saw it B, I swear I knew… it’s perfect for you honestly” she chatted excitedly, heading towards the door where the garment bag was hanging, unzipping it to reveal the dress.

Admittedly, she felt beautiful. It was rare that Betty could look in the mirror and honestly say she felt that way, no matter how much other people tried to convince her. But standing in that simple but gorgeous emerald coloured dress, she could admit it proudly. The dress had two thin straps holding it up, with two thicker sleeves falling loosely off her shoulders. The material clung to her breasts and her waist, highlighting the subtle natural curves she had, and flowed out from her hips, the light, floaty fabric of the skirt cascading to the floor. Everything about it made Betty feel wonderful… it was a perfect _prom dress_.

“B, you look incredible” Veronica whispered sincerely, walking up behind her in the mirror. “Come on, we need to get going” she said softly.

“Do you promise we’re not going to-”

“I swear” Veronica said solemnly, looking Betty dead in the eye. “We are not going anywhere near that high school tonight” she vowed, assuring her again. “Now come on” she smiled, offering Betty her hand, which she took with a small smile.

Once Veronica slammed the driver’s door of her car shut, she turned to Betty in the passenger seat with a sigh, holding out a small black piece of material. Betty frowned deeply when she leaned forward to look at the item more closely.

“A blindfold?” she said in disbelief, her eyes widening a little. “Am I being kidnapped?” she questioned alarmed, only half joking.

“For the hundredth time, these are _your boyfriend’s_ instructions” Veronica explained, rolling her eyes slightly and handing Betty the blindfold. “Put it on but for the love of god, please do not ruin your makeup, it’s my masterpiece” she pleaded, audibly wincing as Betty slipped the material over her face. “I told him a blindfold was a bad idea” she muttered bitterly as the ignition started.

It was only a short drive, if an extremely disorientating one, and before too long Veronica switched off the engine. Almost immediately, Betty heard the door beside her open and a large hand grasp hers, alerting her that it wasn’t Veronica. “Jughead?” she asked hesitantly as the mysterious person helped her out of her seat.

“Not even close, babe.”

“Kevin? What are you doing here?” Betty asked, growing more and more confused with each new piece of information. “And can I take this darn blindfold off yet?” her voice raised a little as her desperation grew.

“Nope” she could practically _hear_ the smirk he was wearing. “You look beautiful Betty” Kevin said as he started walking, gently guiding her with him by gently tugging on her hand.

“Thank you Kev. I wish I could return the compliment but I can’t fucking see” she cursed in a rare instance, murmuring sourly. “Is Veronica still here?”

“Right here B” her voice came from her left side, while Kevin remained on her right, clutching her hand. “Okay B, there’s some steps here” she informed her, grabbing onto her other hand while Betty cautiously stepped forward. Mercifully, there were only a few before they reached their destination. That’s when she knew where they were, because she would have recognised the way that bell tinkled as the door opened anywhere.

“You ready B?” Veronica whispered as she carefully pulled off the blindfold. For a few seconds, Betty kept her eyes closed, afraid of what would greet her.

“Betty?” her eyes fluttered open at the sound of his voice.

Pop’s was decorated so beautifully that it was almost unrecognisable. The usual fluorescent neon lights had been shut off, instead they were lit by an abundance of fairy lights, strung throughout the diner, twinkling above them like a glorious sky full of stars, with clusters of candles glowing in a line along the counter. White and silvery balloons had been gathered in bunches and scattered everywhere: hung in the corners, along the backs of the booths, a few loose ones kicking around the floor. Streamers and ribbons had been tied in perfect bows to every surface imaginable, with real and very beautiful flowers weaved into them. The jukebox was softly playing a song in the background. In the centre of it all, a banner hung directly opposite where she was standing, with four words painted across it in multicoloured letters.

‘ _WELCOME TO YOUR PROM’_

Beneath it, Veronica, Kevin and Archie, all dressed up and looking wonderful, were gathered off to one side. By the time Betty’s eyes fell on Jughead beside them, her eyes were completely full with tears.

He was wearing a suit, fitted to him perfectly, with a green tie that matched the shade of Betty’s dress exactly. His hair, unruly with curls falling over his eyes as always (she wouldn’t have it any other way), seemed strikingly different at first for a reason she couldn’t place - it only took her a moment to realise that it was because it had been left uncovered by his beanie. He was standing, watching her with a shy smile, his hands buried in his pockets.

“You did all this?” she asked, her voice wavering and thick with emotion as her eyes wandered around the empty diner again, once being insufficient to take it all in. She wanted to study it forever.

“Uh… I had a lot of help from my team over here” he mumbled, pointing to where their friends stood in a cluster, all waiting for Betty’s reaction, “and of course Pop… but yeah.”

“How?” she asked, unable to even begin to comprehend how he had managed to pull this off.

“I’m his favourite employee” he grinned smugly. “And a lot of secret trips to the mall in Greendale, and of course Veronica’s keen stylistic  eye… and her credit card” his smile started to fade a little when Betty still hadn’t reacted.

“You did all this for me?” she whispered in shock, a traitorous tear slipping from her eye.

“You wanted to go to prom” he shrugged. “With the people that matter” he smiled, looking back over at their friends, who were pretending not to listen. “I wanted to make that happen for you Betts” he whispered, with a small smile.

“She swore we _weren’t_ going to prom” she mumbled quietly, remembering Veronica’s words from earlier, more confused and in shock than anything else.

“It’s not _the_ prom, it’s _your_ prom, Betty… You don’t like it?” he asked softly, a brief sadness flashing in his eyes.

Without another word, Betty quickly skipped forwards and threw her arms around her boyfriend, hugging him tightly. After a brief moment of surprise, his arms curled around her waist, pulling her even closer, while his head buried into her shoulder, his lips pressing a small kiss to the exposed skin there.

“I love it… I love it so much” she whispered hoarsely. “I love you so much Jughead Jones”

“I love you too, Betty Cooper, more than you know.” He pulled back, his thumb wiping the small tears from her face, which she prayed hadn’t ruined her makeup and took her face in his hands kissing her fiercely. Betty’s hands found their way to rest on his neck, gently pulling him closer into her embrace, holding him close as their lips moved together.

“I can’t believe you would do this for me” she whispered, leaning her forehead against his, their noses rubbing against each other gently. She pulled away slightly so she could admire the way the dim lighting cast shadows across his handsome face, all smooth skin and sharp lines.

“If you hadn’t guessed by now, there really is not much that I wouldn’t do for you Betty” he confessed with a small laugh and a rare blinding smile. “May I have this dance?” he asked, already slipping his arms around her waist again, swaying gently on his feet.

“You know you can’t dance Juggie” Betty giggled, sniffling but winding her arms around his neck nonetheless.

“Shush, it’s prom” he winked and pressed a kiss to her temple, letting his lips linger there as she laughed softly, swaying with him. “Just so you know” he murmured into her hair, “you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Though truthfully, it doesn’t make sense that it happened at all, I still can’t fathom how you came to be mine… but I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.”

Even after all those months, Jughead still found a new way to say ‘I love you’ every single day and it astounded her. She didn’t say anything in reply, just smiled without restraint, shaking her head with a small laugh, silently wondering how she got so lucky.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Veronica walk up and snap a picture of the two of them, wrapped up in each other’s arms, beneath a hundred twinkling lights. Betty could already feel that memory forming, and it was one she wanted to treasure forever. After letting her take a few candid ones, she tugged on Jughead’s sleeve so they could turn towards the camera and take a few more. She wanted to keep taking pictures, grabbing her own phone and snapping photos of every corner of the diner, every single detail she could. Though she was already certain she would remember that night forever, she wanted the pictures so she could prove she hadn’t dreamt it.

Jughead could already feel all the weeks of hard work and secret planning paying off, to see the strings of glowing lights they’d spent hours hanging get lost in the sparkle of her eyes, bouncing off her dress as she danced through the diner, excitedly taking pictures and talking to the others animatedly. At some point, Veronica turned up the jukebox and rushed over to Kevin for a dance and Betty skipped right back to Jughead, placing a short kiss on his lips and wrapping her arms around him. He smiled, holding her close and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. Betty was sure that there was no where in the world that she would feel safer, than in Jughead’s arms and no universe in which she could be happier than she was on that night.

“Thank you for the perfect prom” she whispered, already wanting to relive the most beautiful memory.

  


**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought in a comment! 
> 
> P.s. I've missed this story and its wonderful readers <3


End file.
